While
virtual machine technology is not particularly new, it has recently
come of age. Those seem to be the prevailing sentiments of DailyTech
readers, as expressed in commentary posted along with a recent series
of virtualization-related articles running on the pages of DailyTech.

To
put it more succinctly, “Virtualization
has been around since the 60s, but it's never been so far out into
the computing market as it's becoming today, nor has there been such
cooperation on standards surrounding it,” reader MatthiasF
wrote in a recent DailyTech
posting.

While
virtual machines may indeed date back to a technique born in the
mainframes of the 1960s, the technology has made great strides since
that time, becoming increasingly relevant and welcome to modern
users, according to readers such as rippleyaliens.
“Virtualization offers faster ability for deployment, and a
different type of scaling. Instead of buying 1,000 servers -- all the
same, yet with different workloads -- virtualization allows for . .
.dynamic resource scheduling, i.e., moving more taxed servers over to
(a server) that is not as taxed.”

Some
readers argued that virtualization, and the closely related
technology of cloud computing, are little more than empty buzzwords,
rehashing old concepts and recycling them as new in order to generate
sales and interest in a drifting IT economy. "`Cloud computing’
and `virtualization’ are almost interchangeable with `mainframe
computing’ and `centralized computing’ from the 80s. Give it
another 10 years and we will be back to powerful workstations at
every desk,” quipped Master
Kenobi.

However,
several readers took issue with that position, arguing that
virtualization and cloud computing may not be entirely new concepts,
but they have gained new significance in today’s technology
marketplace. “Virtualization has been around for over 40 years,”
wrote AstroCreep,
“but hasn't been seen as having any real value until the last ten
years or so. Little real world meaning? No, far from it.”
AstroCreep went on to describe rolling out three virtualized servers
over the summer, leading to virtualizing 25 of his company’s 29
servers. “The savings on energy costs alone are enough to make up
for the investment -- hardware and software.”

Server
virtualization isn’t the only type of virtual machinery igniting
conversation among DailyTech readers. Desktop virtualization
was also top of mind, sparking a lively debate over the merits of
this client-side technology. The pending release of Windows 7, which
features a virtualized “XP Mode” in several versions, has added
new fuel to the fire.

Several readers
expressed disappointment that XP Mode will not provide the perfect
environment for running their vintage 3D games, citing the
virtualization software’s inability to fully support 3D graphics
features.

“XP Mode does not
support 3D acceleration, so unless you are playing DOS games that you
could play in XP but not Vista, its not a gaming solution,”
lamented omnicronx,
who added, “This
is not made for home users, its going to be marketed as a migration
tool. I'm not saying home users can't take advantage, but they are
not the primary focus of this software.”

Numerous business
users appeared to be in agreement with this sentiment, citing a
variety of corporate uses for the desktop virtualization scheme. “For
developers that will be creating applications that will need to be
deployed to both platforms, I see this as a great thing,” wrote
bribud.
“The developers will be able to switch back and forth to test out
certain features that may be a problem on one OS, but not the other.
(This) will save some companies some time and money.”

The ability to run
legacy applications represents another major reason for businesses to
adopt Windows 7’s XP Mode, according to several DailyTech
posters. “The use of bad coding practices was endemic among these
(legacy applications), and that meant Vista was a no-go unless they
could run them under XP in a VM (virtual machine),” epobirs
wrote. “XP Mode solves that very well.”

For example, “There
is a critical app that is widely used by convalescent hospitals to
produce their Medicare billing. It's pretty ugly and can't even
install on Vista, never mind run on it. I've already tested it with
the XP Mode beta and it works perfectly, integrating with the Win7
desktop in a way that require nearly no training of existing users,”
according to epobirs. ”For me and my clients, XP Mode is a huge
win.”

However, for some
readers, too much of a good thing may actually be a bad thing.
“Unfortunately this will give some programmers and companies an
excuse to not replace old incompatible software,” wrote 3minence.
“People need to see this for what it is, a tool to give them time
to upgrade/replace their software in a timely and controlled manner;
a stop-gap measure. . .But, people being people, some will still
ignore the future and then scream loudly when the next version of
Windows no longer provides this legacy support.”

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DailyTech using its blog entries to advertise is good example the kind of garbage Rupert Murdoch was talking about when he criticized free on-line news and blogging. Ad-based sites just can't produce quality content that can compete with pay sites. Pay sites are the future.

DT should start thinking about producing an App for the iPhone/iPod. In the long run, you guys will make roughly 3-4x as much as what you're making now.

"This week I got an iPhone. This weekend I got four chargers so I can keep it charged everywhere I go and a land line so I can actually make phone calls." -- Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg